FSU Tops BC 3-2

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Fifth-ranked Florida State (9-1-0, 2-0-0 ACC) handed No. 3 Boston College (9-1-0, 1-1-0 ACC) its first loss of the season with a 3-2 victory Sunday afternoon at the Seminole Soccer Complex. Redshirt sophomore Jessica Price gave the Seminoles the lead for good breaking a 2-2 tie in the 73rd minute on her seventh goal of the season.

For the third game in a row, FSU knocked off a top 10 opponent and is now 5-0-0 against ranked teams in 2009 including a mark of 4-0-0 against top 10 teams.

With the victory, FSU extended its win streak to five straight against BC, while remaining unbeaten in eight all-time meetings (6-0-2).

The five combined goals on Sunday were the most goals scored between the two teams as the two schools had scored just eight goals in seven previous meetings. In fact, the Eagles had never scored a goal against the Seminoles until today.

“Well, it was exactly what we expected,” said head coach Mark Krikorian. “We know Boston College is a very, very good team. They came in here and pushed us to the limit. The good thing for us is that we found a way to win. It’s not always going to be pretty but it’s about finding a way to win and again our team proved to be resilient. In the end, we had to defend a little. I thought that our group hung in there at the end.”

FSU struck first in the 10th minute of action as Tori Huster found the back of the net from 18 yards out to give the Seminoles the early 1-0 lead. On a Boston College corner, Toni Pressley sent a header from inside the box to a wide open Casey Short. Short made a long run down the middle of the field and with three Eagle defenders converging quickly sent a pass off to her right to an on coming Huster. Huster took one dribble and sent a blast from the top of the box into the left side of the net for the goal.

The goal was Huster’s third of the season and third career tally against the Eagles as she scored both goals in a pair of 1-0 victories over BC in 2008.

The lead was short lived as the Eagles tied the game less than four minutes later on a goal by Victoria DiMartino. BC pushed the offensive tempo following the goal by the Seminoles stringing together three shots in just over two minutes before DiMartino scored the equalizer in the 13th minute. Off a pass from Kristen Mewis, DiMartino slotted her team leading 10th goal of the season inside the right post from 15 yards.

The goal for BC was the first in eight games against the Seminoles. It closed the book on FSU’s consecutive scoreless minute’s streak against the Eagles at 592 minutes and 40 seconds.

The Seminoles would retake the lead in the 23rd minute on Tiffany McCarty’s ninth score of the season. Off a Florida State throw-in, Becky Edwards redirected the ball with her back to the goal off a BC player and right to a wide open McCarty, who put away the loose ball from five yards to give the Garnet and Gold a 2-1 advantage at the end of the first half.

In the 56th minute, the Eagles would tie the game for the second time on Sunday this time on a goal by Amy Caldwell. After two nice passes from Victoria DiMartino and Julia Bouchelle inside the Eagles attacking third, Caldwell found the back of the net from eight yards out one-timing her shot inside the left post for her second goal of the season.

For the next 15 minutes, both teams would go back and forth with some quality scoring chances but both goalkeepers were up to the challenge keeping the ball out of the net.

In wasn’t until the 73rd minute, when McCarty and Price combined to give the Seminoles the lead for good. McCarty created the scoring chance making a long run down the field before finding Price on a chip pass in the box. Price made a nice move to get around a pair of Eagles defenders before sending a low liner with her left foot underneath a diving Jillian Mastroianni and inside the right post from 11 yards out for the eventual game winner.

“That goal was pretty good,” added Krikorian. “I thought Tiff McCarty did a heck of a job corralling the ball, holding the ball under a great deal of pressure and then finding Jess. Jess is pretty illusive; she created enough space for herself and put together a quality finish.”

BC would not give up as the Eagles countered with a barrage of shots in the final 15 minutes of action. Erin McNulty made a nice poke save in the 76th minute on a blast from Kristen Mewis from about 24 yards out. The ensuing corner was to no avail as the Seminoles were able to clear the ball down the field.

The best scoring opportunity came from Brooke Knowlton with under four minutes to play as her shot from 15 yards out caromed off the left post. Lauren Switzer was there to coral the rebound sending the ball out of the Eagles offensive third.

McCarty and Short finished the game with a team-high three shots a piece, while McNulty played all 90 minutes in goal and registered three saves.

“We fought really hard today,” added McCarty. “BC was a good team; we knew we had to fight until the very end. We got the result; 2-0 in the ACC is a pretty good start.”

Boston College finished the game out shooting Florida State 16-13, while the Seminoles held a 7-5 advantage in corner kicks.

“It was a really hard fought game,” said Price. “We just tried to work the ball around and make them work hard. I felt we did a good job of that today.”

Entering Sunday’s contest, the Eagles had allowed just one goal through the first nine games. The three goals scored by the Seminoles were the most scored on BC since October 9, 2008 when the Eagles fell 3-2 to North Carolina in Chapel Hill.

Florida State returns to action on Sunday, October 4 at 1:00 p.m. as the Seminoles host Miami at the Seminole Soccer Complex, in a game honoring Breast Cancer Awareness. Fans are encouraged to come out and support the Seminoles while helping the team raise funds to support a great cause. Seventy-five percent of the proceeds will stay right here in Tallahassee to benefit the Tallahassee Memorial Sharon Ewing Walker Breast Cancer Health Center, while 25 percent of the funds will go to the Kay Yow Foundation.

The Seminole soccer team will help `Paint the Plex Pink’ by wearing special pink Nike jerseys for the game. Fans will have the opportunity to purchase the authentic gear as all 22 game jerseys will be auctioned off online at Seminoles.com beginning Wednesday, September 30 and ending Wednesday, October 7. Live stats will be available via gametracker. Fans can also follow Seminole Soccer action all season long via Twitter and Facebook on Seminoles.com.